alexcs-1 Reviews

Somersault (2004)

2 Years On, A Very Moving Film

[9/10 · 22 October 2006]

I must confess some bias, being a massive fan of the Snowy area :) This film I can see not appealing to those who have never been to the Cooma/Jindabyne area of NSW. They will have no point of reference. For those who have however, this film is simply brilliant. I have stayed at the motel Heidi stayed at. I have visited friends with houses like Joes. The mood/feeling of Heidi around the edges of Lake Jindabyne are uncanny. There is a feeling down there I have not had anywhere else in Australia. A barren, cold feeling that is at once breathtaking and heartbreaking.

Objectively, one could indeed see this movie being light on concerning the plot. In my mind and experiences though, I have never been so engrossed. Heidi and Joes relationship is so tantalising. So possible. It might seem to some as not realistic, but it really is. This is how many, many Australians express themselves ( on a good day! ) It is pure, and wonderful, and simply amazing and I don't care that this may have been the only film close to warranting attention in 2004. It is regardless completely brilliant, and I for one will be holding it close to my heart for a long long time to come.

Australian cinema very rarely gets this close to actual emotion, and this film hits it again and again. Some of it may be contrived or stereotypical, but overall it really is a gem hidden amongst 21st century Australian cinema pap. Enjoy it please :)

Sideways (2004)

A pleasant surprise

[9/10 · 7 February 2005]

I initially went into this film not know exactly what to expect, but probably a quaint indie job. The first few opening shots almost convinced me of this, and there was a steady, enveloping depression over the first 20 or so minutes.

Once the film begins to unravel its story and emotion, you start to become more receptive of what is happening. What is happening is a seriously awesome piece of cinema that transcends Lost in Translation or any of the other indie movies this thing has been compared to. This movie trades their empty/overdone style for actual storyline. Anyone not paying a huge amount of attention may miss this. There is a sincere aura about this film that I haven't seen for a long time. Even compared to About Schmidt and Election, this film is, just quietly, unbelievably good.

True, there is a lot of depressed giamatti in there, and at times pieces of that can grate, but its worth it for the 2 or 3 times in the film where this pays off in watching him rip his heart out emotionally.

This movie isn't for everyone. I would hazard a guess and say your level of enjoyment will revolve around your state of mind, and whatever else is going on in your life. Some people will just not be able to identify with giamatti, and that is probably a blessing in disguise, but for those who can, i think you'll find this film to be, as title, a very pleasant surprise.

enjoy!

Super Mario Bros. (1993)

interesting

[10/10 · 1 October 2003]

This reminds me a lot of brazil for some reason. bob hoskins i guess is the main reason. why people are rating this 3.5 is beyond me, its an interesting take on a CHILDS videogame that has enough good bits to warrant a complete sitting.

time to lighten up people :)

Made (2001)

love it!

[10/10 · 24 March 2002]

After hearing about this, I knew I had to check it out after Swingers, which was an interesting movie in itself, but not hugely funny. Made is definitely one of the funniest movies Ive seen in a few years. It's not obviously funny, or vulgar humour. Its the little exchanges and facial expressions of Jon Favreau and Vinvce Vaughn that really light this movie up.

Lets face it, the cinematography isnt the best, or the editing, but the script and the combined subtle talents of the two leads will have you snorting with mirth in nearly every scene. Their chemistry is perfect, and cant remember seeing such chemistry since Lemmon/Matthau in their countless movies together. The gratingly annoying Vaughn bounces off Favreaus retiring dry humour incredibly well.

I can see people not liking this. The audience has to do a little bit of work to stay with the humour, which can be a small look that is missed if you blink. The plot itself is a little tired, but the two leads made it work, at least for me

9/10, fave film of the year so far.

Dogma (1999)

Decent but casting could have been better

[5 February 2002]

i liked it, but the casting for me ruined it. chris rock is annoying and parly unneccesary, but im sure someone else could have done it better. my main gripe was bethany. her voice was 100x times too cynical and bored for my liking. granted there needed to be cynicism, but she just made me cringe at some stages.

i was always thinking how much better jason lee could have carried off rufus (obviously removing the black sections :P), jeff anderson as azrael, marilyn gighliotti/claire forlani as bethany (!), jeremy london instead of matt damon :P. they all have the genuine jersey slacker routine down pat, and it would have been very interesting to see the clerks-mallrats cast almalgamte like that.

ill keep dreaming! 5/10 as is.